This invention relates generally to a vehicle roof. More particularly, this invention relates to a method for assembly of the. vehicle roof on an auto body frame.
In ordinary vehicle bodies, the vehicle roof, which can have a roof opening for a sunroof and can be connected to a movable cover or folding roof. The vehicle roof is typically a fixed component integrated in the auto body, which is directly connected to the columns of the body. The roof lining in such bodies commonly includes cladding parts, as well as other vehicle parts such as sun visors, hand grips and, if present, sliding or folding roof elements. The components must be subsequently mounted typically from the vehicle interior.
Vehicle roofs have already been proposed that are produced as modules separate from the vehicle body and mounted with their outer edges on body frames applied to the body columns and rigidly connected to them by gluing or screwing. For example, one known vehicle roof (DE 28 45 708 A1) is designed as a preformed sandwich plate, having a roof skin on the outside and a cushion and/or coating material as roof lining on the inside. The assembly times on the final assembly line are shortened by preassembly. However, edge-spanning outer cover strips and the covering sections that clad the rails of the roof frame from the inside must still be applied. This increases assembly time.
Another known modular-design vehicle roof (FR 2 529 844), which has an inner covering formed from a foam material is provided in one piece with four flaps. The flaps are connected to the central area of the internal covering via hinges and is not designed like the generic vehicle roof for mounting on a closed body frame, but is placed on two longitudinal side rails of the body. The vehicle roof therefore has integrated hollow elements on the front and back with protruding edges to accommodate the windshield and rear window. The flaps of the internal covering are shape-stable and serve for lateral cladding of the longitudinal rails and to cover the roof edges and upper edges of the windows in the front and back. During assembly of this known vehicle roof, only the two side flaps are to be pivoted downward/inward, in order to be passed between the two longitudinal side rails, when the vehicle roof is mounted. The front and rear flaps serve as assembly aids during subsequent insertion of the front and rear windows. After assembly, cutouts remain on the corners between the flaps that must still be closed by additional cover elements.
In general terms, this present invention is a vehicle roof with a preformed inner shell forming the roof lining. The lining protrudes on all sides beyond the outside edges of the vehicle roof including the corners, i.e., the lining is larger than the inside dimensions of the body opening bounded by the rails or sections of the closed body frame. The roof lining is flexible or elastic on the protruding areas, so that it is bendable for passage through the body opening bordered by the vehicle frame, with partial folding in the corner areas downward without permanent deformation and is designed to cover the vehicle frame. The protruding areas of the roof lining therefore form the coverings for the roof frame sections so that additional cover strips and cover sections are not required, even in the corners.
The separately produced vehicle roof according to the present invention embraces, in a one-part design, all the elements that are required to cover the visible surfaces of the body frame after mounting and attachment of the vehicle roof to the body frame or frames. The actual roof lining then grades seamlessly into areas that serve for roof frame covering. The invention therefore permits short assembly times on the final assembly line because of the one-part nature of the modular, separately produced vehicle roof with the covering areas of its lining. The invention also achieves a seamless harmonic configuration of the entire roof lining, even in its transitional surfaces to the glazed surfaces of the vehicle body, i.e., to the windshield, side windows and rear window, and also in its corner areas.
The vehicle roof of the present invention includes many variants. In one embodiment, it can be provided with an outer roof skin, preferably a rigid roof skin formed, for example, from a steel sheet. In another, it can be formed from appropriate hard foam or other roof skin. In the latter case, the outside can be painted like the auto body. Another embodiment requires the presence of a rigid roof skin, whose outer edges can be mounted directly, i.e., without an intermediate foam layer, on the roof frame and fastened to it.
Yet another embodiment can be provided with an already functional preassembled sliding roof unit. The roof lining preformed as an inner shell is attached to the bottom of the sliding roof frame. The inner surface of the roof skin can be additionally coated with a foam material in the regions adjacent to the sliding roof opening to improve sound and heat insulation.
PUR foam is preferred for formation of the inner shell, which is sufficiently flexible for the purposes of the invention or can even be made elastic. Predetermined folds that facilitate temporary bending downward and folding on the four corners of the vehicle roof can also be provided. Harder foam materials can also be applied for those areas of the inner shell for which flexibility is not required. This applies especially for the case in which the vehicle roof has no rigid supporting outer skin.
Downward bendable areas of the inner shell according are also provided with preassembled elements or prefabricated mounting sites for such elements. The assembly cost on the assembly line is further simplified on this account because the corresponding elements can either be mounted at the sites prescribed for them or even already be present preassembled on the modular vehicle roof.
In the interest of the most extensive possible prefabrication of the vehicle roof without requiring subsequent adjustment work on the body frame, a vehicle roof prefabricated in this manner can be joined to the body frame on all four sides without difficulty. If the vehicle roof is to be exclusively joined to the body frame by gluing or screw connections, the roof edges are expediently configured thereto.
Reinforcement parts ensure stiffening of the vehicle roof and therefore serve not only for transportability and manageability of the preassembled vehicle roof, but also for its stiffening after assembly on the body frame. The reinforcement parts embedded in foam material prescribed for this purpose need not be fully enclosed by the foam material, but can be exposed on their lower surfaces so that they can be flatly mounted directly on the vehicle frame for fastening.
In the design of a vehicle roof with a sliding roof, water that enters through the edge gap of the sliding roof and is trapped by the sliding roof frame can advantageously be diverted outward. A water runoff seam is expediently provided, in this case, between the outer edge of the roof skin and the body frame.
According to a method of the present invention bent position of the regions of the inner shell involved in assembly are temporarily fixed and fixation is eliminated after passage of the bent regions through the body frame and attachment of the vehicle roof to the body frame. For example, for temporary fixation, it is sufficient if the downward bent regions of the inner shell are tied together by a flexible band or cord or the like, placed around these regions from the outside.